The Baron's Daughter
by iamcrafty
Summary: It was all in the papers. Karen Peace was the one who turned in Baron Battle, her own father. Now she's in high school, and her brother still hates her. Can she put her family back together? And what happens when Baron Battle escapes prison?
1. Prologue

**I wanted to try this out, so here goes. Please review!**

Prologue

"Stop, Villain!" The Commander, well, commanded to the darkly dressed man in purple and black costume. The suspect prepared to fight the newly arrived hero.

"Your efforts will be fruitless," the dark man said eerily. "You have the wrong man!" They engaged in a battle, fighting, jumping, never straying far from the spot they had met. Just as The Commander grabbed hold of Baron Battle's collar and lifting him up to wind up a punch, he spotted a little girl in hiding, clutching her small mouth from screaming. Without letting go of the Baron, he addressed the child.

"Little girl, did you see who stole The Rock?" he asked. Her eyes wandered to the defeated villain. She nodded her head. With a hesitant and frightened finger, she pointed to the man The Commander was holding. "You did the right thing, young citizen." And with that, a woman swooped overhead and scooped him and the Baron up in to the air, leaving the young girl to collapse in tears at the events that happened before her and the ones that would follow because of them.


	2. First Day of School

**This chapter isn't as fun as the rest of the story, but it's still fun. Hope you like it!**

First Day of School

I was doing that thing when you type things that you are thinking with my fingers. I did that whenever I was nervous, or bored. It drove my brother crazy, but I could tell he was doing his best ignore me. I was used to it. He wasn't my biggest fan either way, so I didn't bother him.

I stepped out of the crazy flying bus and my brother disappeared, leaving me with the other freshman. I was nervous, and yes, I was typing out these thoughts on my thigh as I stood in anticipation for direction. It was my first time in a place like this, where everyone was so comfortable with the strange things that others did, the super powers. The school president came out to greet us and took us around the school and we heard more speeches and then ended up in a gym with a very loud teacher. He also gave a speech and then started the Power Placement.

"Karen Peace," he called. I got up and stood up on the platform. "Let's see if you're as good as your brother. Go." Only my name would give away my relation to Warren. I was half Japanese, so I didn't exactly look like him, even though my skin was just as dark as his.

"I don't have a power," I said boredly. He sighed.

"Got another one," he said to himself. "In my day we all had our powers before puberty," he muttered quietly before loudly announcing, "Sidekick." I stepped over to the side where the others were. I took a seat and looked around my peers who were already forming their cliques and circles while I so obviously was excluded from them. I brought my knees to my chest and rested my chin on them. _This bites._

I put down my tray of food on an empty table, scanning to room to see if I could find my brother. I spotted him with a group of his friends. I chuckled to myself. I didn't even know he had friends; he never brought anyone home.

"Do you want to sit with us?" I looked up to see a cheerful red-head looking down on me.

"Uh.." I stammered but before I could answer, she grabbed my tray and started walking off.

"Come on." _Well, what can I do? She took my tray!_ I got up to follow her, stopping dead in my tracks when I realized where she was going. Before I even got there, my brother stood up without looking at me and walked off.

"Where is he going?" a purple girl asked.

"Don't mind him," the red head said, putting my tray down beside her. "I'm Layla, and this is Will, Magenta, Zach, and Ethan. And the rude guy who just left is Warren."

"Karen," I introduced, sitting down beside Layla.

"So how is Power Placement coming?" Layla asked. I shrugged.

"Sidekick," I answered.

"So are most of us," Magenta said.

"What's your power?" the blond asked. I had already forgotten his name.

"I don't have one."

"You'll probably get yours soon," the red head assured me. "Will was like when he first got here, but now he's super strong and flies." She looked at him lovingly while he blushed. I turned away; I wasn't used to affection.

After lunch, the freshmen went to the library to get our textbooks. All the books for different classes were in piles according to class and teacher. I went over to a tall stack and checked my schedule to see if this was the right one. _Well stacking them high certainly was a good idea_, I thought to myself.

"Hello, Freshman," I heard someone sing behind me. I turned around to see this tall skinny guy with an extendable arm holding the book that I needed. The way he looked at me made me kinda nervous.

"Thank you," I replied politely.

"Anytime." I saw him bite his lip and give me a weak cool guy look. I mentally rolled my eyes. If my brother couldn't pull off that look, he couldn't. "You need any more help?" I shrugged.

"Sure," I said handing him my schedule. With very little walking, he reached and grabbed all of my books and were carrying them over to the librarian for me to check out.

"I'm Lash," he introduced.

"I know, I saw you and that other junior announcing that to a group of freshmen when you took their money."

"That? No, that was the student fee." I gave him a yeah-right smile.

"There was nothing about that in handbook." The librarian gave me back my card and I picked up my books and headed out.

"Lash, help those freshmen over there, please," the librarian demanded with an annoyed expression. I laughed. I knew he wasn't nice, or probably a good guy, but it was nice to be given some attention when you've been ignored by the only male in your life.

I'm pretty sure when he was younger, 'Mr. All-American Boy' was a cool name. But now, it really was not. He gave us his little spiel about our class, the future, and his career. I was in official hell. I was literally in a class that taught nothing but how to be a hero, or hero support, whatever, and that was the exact opposite of what I wanted. I never wanted to be super; super was the reason I came to live with my dad, leaving my mom when I was 9 years old. Everyone thought it'd be too dangerous for me to be alone with my normal mom in case my powers showed up.

"Today, we'll start with something slow," Mr. Boy said. "Now, appearance is important for both you and your hero. It shows strength, professionalism, and character. So when a goblin tears a gaping wound into your hero," the class leaned forward in anticipation of our role in such a situation, "you must know how to mend the costume." A bunch of heads hit the desks. So we spent our first day learning how to sew and the different kinds of stitches and threads. _Wow, what a giant waste of time_.

Warren

"Hey, Mom," I said when I walked through the door.

"Hey, Baby," she said from the kitchen. I threw my bag on the floor and turned on the TV while Karen ran upstairs. "How was school?"

"It was great," I said with enthusiasm to mock her. She laughed and I turned over to the TV.

"Did… you see Karen around school?"

"I'm not her babysitter," I answered seriously.

"Warren, she's your sister," she said approaching me.

"She's not my sister," I said angrily.

"You're the closest she has to your father now." I glared at my mom. She was the only one who'd never look away first. Even my dad said sometimes I'd get to him. It was a testament to what kind of woman she was. But I was in no mood to argue about the technicalities of our dysfunctional family, so I left her and ran up to kill time before heading off to work.

**Drop me a review. :D**


	3. Love is In the Air

Love is in the Air

Finally. I thought that last couple would never leave. I started to wipe the tables when I saw someone in the corner of my eye. _I could've sworn I locked the door._

"Sorry, we're closed," I said turning around to see Magenta.

"I'm not here for the food," she said, shoulder bag strung across her chest and off her side. I glanced over at the locked door and then at the open vent.

"You always sneak into places?" I asked throwing down the rag I was holding to grab the mop. She shrugged.

"Only if I can't get into them," she said sitting down. I wrung out the soapy water and got started on the floor as she pulled up a chair. "So what's your deal with the freshman?" I ignored her question, hoping she'd drop it, though I knew she wouldn't. "She reminds me of you." I froze.

"She's nothing like me," I snapped at her. Magenta held up two hands.

"I meant that she's quiet and a bit creepy." I huffed and kept on mopping. "So, you guys have a history?"

"I don't want to talk about it," I grumbled.

"Of course you don't." I rinsed the mop and wrung it out again. I saw her kicking her legs while she watched me work. I thought she was cool before, but apparently summer was kind to her; she looked good.

"Was there a reason you snuck in?" I asked her. She shrugged.

"I was in the area, so I thought I'd drop in." I chuckled. I wrung the mop out for the last time and went to dump the water. Ten minutes later, I locked up and walked Magenta out.

"You need a ride?" I asked. She shrugged and hopped into my car.

"Mind if I ask you something?"

"Would it matter?" I asked. She pretended to think about it.

"What happened with you and Freeze Girl?" she asked bluntly. I hesitated before answering.

"She was.." I started. Homecoming last year was great, and we had gone out a few times since then, but I stopped calling her. Apparently, that didn't go well with her. "Nice?" Magenta made a face.

"That bad, huh?"

"What? I said she was nice." She made a face at me.

"I don't think you mean that," she said matter-of-factly. "You didn't actually break up with her did you?" I turned to her.

"You're a pain in my ass, rodent," I said. She laughed and pointed the direction where I was supposed to turn. I pulled up in front of her house and she opened her door, stopping to turn around before closing it.

"Oh, and Peace," I looked up. "You look good." She closed the door and ran up home, somehow having a strange effect on me to continue to stare at her until she scurried into her house.

Karen

I snuck outside today with my sack lunch so Warren wouldn't think I was parading on his territory. I leaned against a tree and listened to my iPod while I munched on my sandwich. A nice breeze was going and I closed my eyes and leaned my head against the tree.

"Uh, your papers are flying everywhere," I heard someone say. At first I looked up to see who it was, but before it registered, I saw my homework that I had stupidly forgotten to put back in my bag blanketing the grass around me. I bolted up and started picking up the papers. The guy helped me out and within a few minutes I had retrieved everything.

"Thanks," I said when he handed me the half he had picked up.

"I'm Zach, we met yesterday," he introduced. I remembered him. I noticed a little glimmer in his eye like the one he had yesterday staring at the purple girl, so I figured he was the type that liked attention from girls.

"Karen," I reminded him.

"What are you doing out here?" he asked. I shrugged.

"It's a nice day," I answered. He seemed satisfied, and I was grateful he didn't ask any questions about Warren's reaction to me the day before. "What about you?"

"I forgot my money," he said shyly. I looked behind him and saw Lash and Speed staring at him and pounding their fists to each other. I rolled my eyes and took out the other half of my sandwich as I sat back down in the shade and offered it to him.

"It's not very good," I said. He hesitantly took the sandwich and took a bite as he sat in front of me.

"It tastes good." I laughed.

"Of course it does; I made it." I opened a bag of chips and put it between us.

"What's all this green string?" I rolled my eyes.

"Alfalfa sprouts." He nodded and took another bite.

"Thanks for the sandwich." I just nodded and looked ahead. "So how are you liking Sky High?" I looked over at him. He didn't seem like the kind of guy I wanted to pour my heart into, so I figured I'd keep it to a minimum.

"It's fine."

"Have you gotten your power yet?" I shrugged and looked down.

"I don't think so."

"You'll get it soon. My man Stronghold got his when he was fighting Peace in the cafeteria." I did a double take.

"Stronghold? As in The Commander?"

"Yeah, Will and Warren had this huge showdown when Will spilled food on Warren. Got ugly, but it helped Will get his power and bumped him up to hero status. Maybe you could try that."

"Yeah, I'm not going to do that," I said shaking my head. He took another chip and audibly chewed it. So, my brother met my father's arrester's son; I could only imagine his feelings towards Stronghold. "How did they become friends?"

"Ever heard of Royal Pain?" I nodded. "She tried to destroy the school last year, but we took her down. Warren and Will had to team up, and they've been cool every since." I was hurt that I was finding out this information from someone else, but fascinated at the same time.

"Tell me more." He retold his tale with more details, though I was sure his role wasn't as large as he made it seem.

"Lash and Speed were involved?" I gasped when he got to that part.

"Yeah, they played dirty too."

"How were they not thrown in jail?"

"Royal Pain, since technically, she was old. But the others were considered minors, so they got juvey for a year and did some community service and have to help out in the school. Pretty sure they got some strings pulled too." I knew Lash was a sleaze, but hearing this was pretty low even for him.

In P.E, Coach Boomer had us doing the rope climb, which was easier for most than others. This class was joined with heroes, and was suitable for all ages. It was the one class my brother and I had with each other. It was the purple girl's turn, amongst the other ten that were climbing. She struggled a bit to get up there. I noticed my brother's face as he looked at her, like he wanted to help her, like he was rooting for her. It made me want to meet her. I realized that I wanted somehow to get to know his friends so that I could know him better. It was a pathetic thought, I knew, but he was the only family I had, and the closest to my father I'd ever know.

Just then a bird flew in and turned into a brunette girl with pigtails, landing right in front of Boomer. She handed him a note and he read it over.

"Peace," he called. My brother looked up in response. "Not you, the other one," he said looking at me. _Crap._ "You're wanted in the office." I closed my eyes. I knew Warren didn't want people to know he had a sister, especially one that looked so obviously different from him, but what could I do. I looked over at him, but he had turned away. I walked out of the gym, hearing the whispers of our shocked audience. The bird led me out and took me to the office.

"Karen Peace," Principal Powers said when I shut the door to her office. I nodded. She stood up and walked over to me. "Your guardian is on the way to pick you up right now. There has been an attack on your mother."


	4. Keep the Secret

**Thank you for people adding my story, and thanks to Confessed for commenting. Enjoy the next chapter!**

Keep the Secret

Karen

"My mother?" I asked. Principal Powers nodded.

"Your birth mother. She's in the hospital." I gasped, realizing the severity of the situation. "There's more." She took a deep breath, hesitating whether or not to tell me. "There was a threat written on the walls where she was attacked; the police suspect that it was directed towards you." I froze. I realized I knew who it was. _But I had kept silent so long; I kept my end of the bargain._ She put a photo in front of me of a wall with a message deeply scratched into it. 'Keep the secret, keep the Peace'. My mouth was gaping. "Do you understand what this means?" I was torn. I wanted to tell her, maybe I should've. Clearly _he_ was going to hurt the people I kept silent to protect for so long. I betrayed my family for this secret. But I knew he was capable of hurting many more.

"No, Ma'am," I answered. I tried hard to hold back the tears, but to no avail. Luckily, my mom came into the office.

"Principal Powers," she greeted her and then led me out.

My mom flew us in her car over to the hospital and we darted to my mother's room. I slowly walked over to her bedside. She was unconscious with scratches and bruises all over her pale skin. She seemed so breakable, and she so nearly was. I instantly started sobbing and reached out to hold her warm hand. I hoped that I was more like her than anyone else. I had last seen her just before school started. I remembered telling her how much I didn't want to be a hero. She had told me that I had a responsibility to help others with whatever skills or gifts I had. It was my fault that she was here. I blamed myself for not being there to protect my mom, however useless I would've been. No one said anything as I buried my face in my hands in helplessness. _Mom, help me. I don't know what to do._

Warren

"How come you never told us she was your sister?" Ethan asked me the second I got close. I ignored him and threw my tray on the table. I felt the others awkwardly waiting for me to answer and huffed. Apparently hiding a sibling was a big deal.

"She's my half sister," I answered. "Few years after I was born, dad got bored and started making babies elsewhere." That seemed to satisfy the guys at least to ease up, though Layla and Magenta still seemed interested. "That's all I'm giving you," I finalized and everyone let up. _Damn Hapa always had to ruin everything._

"Hey, Mom," I said when I walked in the door.

"Warren," she said softly. She was a tough hero, the kind you ran and hid from when she was on your tail, but you'd never know it when she smiled. "Your sister's mother was attacked today. She is in really bad shape. Karen could really use her family now." I sighed. Even though a lot of my hatred towards Karen had turned into indifference, I didn't want to display a fake sense of family. I looked at my mom. Karen wasn't even her kid; she was the very product of my father's insolence, but yet my mom took her in and raised her like her own. She was compassionate, but very stupid.

"Sure, mom, I'll be nice," I promised. She gave me a hug.

"She's at the hospital now, but she'll be back tonight when visiting hours are over." I figured I'd be at work when she got home, so at least I could postpone being kind for a day. I headed up to my room and got started on my homework.

"Don't suppose you understand what locks are for?" I asked Magenta when she popped up in the middle of the closed restaurant. I threw the towel that was over my shoulder into the wash bucket and announced that I was leaving to my boss.

"You want to take me home?" she asked.

"Do I have a choice?" I led her out to my car and drove off.

"So what's the story with you and your sister?" she asked bluntly.

"She's not my sister." She rolled her eyes. With anyone else, I would have told them to shove it, but Magenta wasn't anyone else. "I was 6 years old when I found out he had another kid. It was pretty brutal with my parents. That year was hell for my family, which is saying something seeing how they're so eloquently compatible." Mom being a hero and Dad a villain made room for plenty of gossip and assumptions of my family that I was not well hidden from. I paused before continuing. "When I was 11, she came to live with us, in case her powers were too much for a regular person to handle."

"You know, of anyone to blame for her existence, it's not her." I laughed.

"I sort of got over that. Sort of. At one point, we were almost cool." My face darkened as I let the memory sweep over me. "She was there when The Commander caught my father. It was all over the newspapers. She saw everything go down. She was the one who ID'd him." I saw Magenta's big eyes widen as she realized my sentiments.

"She turned in your father?" I nodded, looking straight ahead. "Wow, you must hate her more than you did Stronghold." I sighed.

"I don't hate her." I was probably trying to convince myself that I didn't, but I couldn't look at Karen the way I should've. I remembered the headlines and stories of my dad being put away. The Commander got a big leap into the public eye after putting him away. Magenta and I stayed silent the rest of the ride to her place. I parked in front of her house and killed the engine. I didn't feel like leaving her for the moment. I leaned back and crossed my arms.

"You okay?" she asked. I sighed letting my heavy chest fall.

"Yeah."

"Okay then." I heard her unbuckle her seatbelt and reached out to grab her hand without opening my eyes.

"Just, stay with me," I requested. I kept my hand around hers with my other arm behind my head. I knew she'd be looking at me weirdly, but I didn't care. All I wanted was the world to disappear and feel nothing for a little bit, not even loneliness. I felt and heard her lean back on her chair too. My fingers shifted to entwine with hers and I felt her pulse slightly heighten and smiled to myself. Five minutes later, I got out of the car and opened Magenta's door to walk her to her doorstep. "Thanks."

"Yeah, sure," she replied. I smiled and she quickly went into her house, looking back at me before shutting the door. I felt better and headed home to face the problems that awaited me there.

There was a note on the refrigerator from my mom telling me she was responding to a distress call. I peeked into Karen's room when I got home, but she was already sleeping. I went inside and took a seat beside her bed. Without her Asian eyes, I could see how she was part of our family. Her eyes were the thing that made it so easy for me to treat her the way I did. It was easy to forget that she was my sister when she looked so much of a different race. But I knew everyone was right. She was my sister. I looked around her room. I hadn't been in here for years. It was so plain. The walls were white and bare, and her desk barely had anything on it. There were some picture frames of her mom and our family, even a few people I didn't recognize. I picked up a frame near her bed of me and rolled my eyes. That was too much emotion for me to handle, so I got up to get ready for bed.

Karen

"You have a reading assignment," Mr. Boy said, handing out copies of a newspaper article. "I want you to highlight and then write an argument of how a sidekick would be helpful in the situation listed in the article." Without raising my head from my arms, I peeked at the article. The hero cop who had been working hand-in-hand with civilian police was being investigated for fraud and embezzlement. I laughed internally at the familiar face. _Maybe life is fair._

At lunch, I sat under my tree with my arms crossed, eating my sandwich. A shadow loomed over me, but my eyes didn't move from the nothing that I was staring at.

"Karen," Lash sang. He sat beside me and offered me chocolate. I grabbed it; I wanted sugar. "So did you see me in Save the Citizen? I was on fire. You know, Speed and I were undefeated for awhile..."

"Where's the villain penitentiary?" I asked him.

"What?" I looked over to him.

"If I wanted to visit a prisoner, where would I go?" He looked at me oddly.

"You want to visit Baron Battle?" he asked me. I nodded.

"There's no way. They don't let villains get visitors." I knew Lash had been the ones to pull the strings to get everyone off the hook so easily, so I decided to take advantage of that knowledge. I smiled and batted my eyes.

"I heard you were a bad boy once," I tried to say seductively. "Surely you must have a way to get me there." I danced my fingers up his chest. "Maybe you could take me there and we could get something to eat afterwards." A smile crept up on his lips and I was hoping my charm was working. Perhaps I was my brother's sister.

"I'll talk to my dad about it."

"Perfect," I purred.

**I made a tuna salad sandwich for the first time. It is pretty good. :D Please review and let me know what you think!**


	5. Lash and Zach

**I decided to change the title of my story to what I originally called it; it seems to make more sense than the other one. Sorry I took so long getting this one up, but I was really unhappy with it for awhile. The next chapters are longer and better, so once I have those ready, I'll put those up. Enjoy!**

Lash and Zach

Karen

_I was following my father through the streets. It was dark and windy, his cape blowing out to emphasize his villainous stature. He kept walking, but he didn't move, while I watched from behind a trash can. The setting around him changed. Now he was inside a building, heading towards a huge red crystal. Arrows and bullets pierced through his body, but he kept going, not a drop of blood landing on the floor. He grabbed the forbidden crystal and turned to face me with a stare of fury. The scenery changed again. I was in the hospital where my mom lay. My father pointed his long spindly finger at her._

_"Keep the secret, Karen. Karen. Karen!"_

I woke up with a jolt and my surrounding classmate were laughing, except for Mr. Boy.

"I'm sorry, did I wake you?" he asked sarcastically.

"No, Sir, I was awake the whole time," I responded sleepily leaning back in the chair. The class laughed.

"Well, I guess we'll have to find some ways to make you snore a little softer when you're awake." He turned his back and started writing on the board. Seriously, how useful can it be for a person to know how to look shorter than their hero counterpart.

I hopped onto Lash's bike after school let out, noticing that my brother saw me. He looked angry, or was it concern? I knew he didn't think Lash was anything good. But I needed to talk with my father, to deal with what was happening to my family. Lash kicked off his bike and we flew into the air.

His father was the warden of the penitientary, which was a convenient connection to have, except that they considered Baron Battle a Level 5 criminal, so I wasn't allowed to see him.

"You don't understand," I argued with the warden. "My mother is hurt."

"And it'll just be worse if you speak to the man responsible."

"If I could just speak to him, I can find out what he wants."

"I'm sorry kid, I can't help you. Now, if you want to accuse him for harming your family, I can set up a trial for him for that." I shook my head defeated. It wasn't what I wanted.

"So why are you trying to see Baron Battle?" Lash asked me when we landed after we left the penitientary. I shrugged.

"Just had a few questions to ask him," I replied.

"Weren't you the one who turned him in?" I didn't answer. "I remember my parents talking about it. They thought it was the craziest thing. It would be like me ratting out my parents." Suddenly I felt very slimy very so close to Lash. My expression dropped as he rambled on. I gathered he completely forgot that he was actually talking to another person and not himself.

"Anyway, thanks for the ride." I was one step slower than a run to my house and through the door. Warren was watching T.V., so I went straight for my room.

"Were you out with Lash?" I froze where I was. _Why did he care where I was?_

"Yeah," I answered. "Is there a problem?" He scoffed.

"Just don't be stupid, Karen." He turned backed to his show and I ran upstairs. _Hmm... I wonder what else I could do to get Warren to talk to me._

"Hey Karen," Zach greeted me as he approached my locker. Seeing him made me smile. I liked his goofy looks and the things he said.

"Hi Zach," I said quietly pulling my books from my locker.

"How are your classes going?" I shrugged.

"Okay, I guess."

"If you ever need help, I can.... find someone to help you." I smiled.

"Thanks."

"Here let me get that for you." He slid my bag off my shoulder and carried it as he walked me to my next class. He pointed to a poster on the wall.

"You going to homecoming?" he asked. I didn't even know there was a dance.

"No," I said.

"Yeah, me neither." He was cute. I stopped and turned to face him.

"What? Is there something on my face?" he asked, touching his cheek. I chuckled.

"This is my class," I answered pointing to the open door.

"Oh right." He handed me back my bag.

"Thanks. I'll see you around," I said and walked into my classroom and took a seat.

"Okay, class, I'm going to need those essays on the pros and cons of capes," Mr. Boy started the class. I put my head on the table while everyone else passed their papers forward. "Miss Peace, where is your essay?"

"I didn't do it," I answered without raising my head. He sighed.

"Miss Peace, if you don't turn in this essay, I'll have to fail you for the assignment." I just politely smiled.

"I understand, Sir."

**Was it okay? The next chapters are better, I promise!**


	6. War of the Peaces

War with the Peaces

Karen

Zach was waiting for me when I got out of class and walked me to my next one. I found him hilarious and super sweet. Again, I ignored Lash's slimy glare as we passed by him on the way to my locker. How I ever found him attractive I'll never know.

"Hey, they're doing a showcase," Zach said. I turned around to see the poster he was looking at for auditions for it. They needed dancers. It was my secret passion, the one thing I was willing to put effort into. "Who would want to do that?" I read over the poster a few times. Maybe high school wouldn't be a complete waste of time.

"I think I want to audition," I said.

"Yeah, I will too."

Warren

I walked down the hall to see Magenta at her locker. The more and more I saw her, the more I wanted to see her. It was weird. I stared at her from afar before realizing I looked stupid standing in the middle of the hallway and walked towards her. Just when I was about to say hi, I saw Zach coming towards us with a black eye.

"What happened to you?" I asked him.

"Me? Nothing," he tried to say casually. I saw that he was grabbing his stomach slightly, so gently poked him. "Ow!" Magenta looked at him and then at me. I sighed and looked straight ahead.

"Who did this?" I asked like I was bored of these corners my friends always got themselves into.

"I'm fine, Peace. Nothing a man can't handle." I stared down at him. Damn, he was small. "Lash."

"Why?" Zach shrugged.

"Something about me.. and _his_ girl." I rubbed my tear ducts with my middle fingers as the anger heated my blood. Without a word, I stormed off to find Karen.

She had just closed her locker and was walking in my direction down the hall. I knew she was going to try to pass me, so I walked right in front to block her way.

"We need to talk," I said sternly. She looked scared for some reason, and then her defenses went up.

"Okay," she answered.

"Whatever games you think you can play, Girl, you need to stop." She squinted in confusion.

"Games?" I squinted back.

"Are you going out with Lash?" It looked like she was going to answer, and then changed her mind.

"How is that your business?" she shot angrily.

"People get hurt because of your actions, Karen. Zach keeps getting bullied because you're sneaking around. Why can't you just grow up?" Any fear left in her eyes disappeared, and I could've sworn it was my father glaring back at me.

"It's my fault that Zach got beat up," she spat. I could feel a crowd forming around us, but I rarely cared what other people thought. She looked over my shoulder at Zach. "Zach, I'm sorry for making Lash a bully. I'm sorry for compelling him to hit you and take your money." She looked back over at me. "Is that all right? Is that better? Anything else you want to blame me for? The fact I have to go to this stupid school and that your friends are nice to me? You think that's my fault too? You know what, Bro? I will give you all the apologies I have ever owed you. I'm sorry that I was conceived, because we all know the control I had over that one. I am sorry that I had to leave my family to live in your house because of a power I never had. You definitely got the shorter end of the stick there."

"So what about Dad?" I fired back. "You sorry about that one too, for tearing our family apart?" I could see that I hit the mark, but I had no soft spot for her.

"You know what, Warren, screw you. Just call a spade a spade. Dad is a villain. He's there because he chose it." That set me off. No one talked about my dad, especially this stupid girl. I flew down my arms that were covered in flames. She scoffed, and started to walk off, and that agitated me more. I flung my arm to hurl a fire ball right at her. I knew I'd regret it afterwards, but I didn't care at that moment. Just then, she threw around her own arms and extinguished the flames mid-air. _What the hell?_ I asked myself. She stared at me evilly and then turned her back. _So she did have powers_. I smiled knowing I didn't have to hold back anymore. I threw fire at the ceiling above her so that it crashed on top of her. She blew everything off of her and sent the debris at me, which I burned. I walked closer to her and flame-threw fire at her, which she held back with a wind storm. People behind me started to duck for cover from the wind while around her ran from the heat. Both of us pushed and struggled to attack the other.

Karen

I had snapped. After 5 years of holding everything inside, I was beyond angry and hurt. I wanted his pain. His attack on me was an invitation to show him exactly what I had growing inside of me for so many years. I learned when I was little that I controlled air, but I never wanted to be super, so I pretended like I never had a power. But now, all I wanted was this moment to show Warren that I was nobody's bitch. He threw his fireballs at me, but I was quick enough to remove the oxygen from the fire's path and extinguish the flame. I punched and pushed him with my power so that he was knocked farther and harder, but he smiled his infuriating smile, antagonizing me more. Finally, we were locked in a struggle. His flames pushed against my heavy wind. I fought to keep my concentration, determined not to let him win.

Just then, the sprinklers turned on, extinguishing my brother's fire and my wind threw him back. He fell on his back and sat up breathing hard staring at me. With the water running, I knew it'd be a low blow for me to keep going, but I still had so much anger, hatred, frustration, and pain I wanted him to know. I was nowhere near done. I charged at him, but he was too fast and got up to block my blows. I kicked and punched him, most he was able to dodge or block, but I got a good one in his hard stomach. When he got a chance, he kicked my side, almost knocking me back. We continued to go at each other. He was stronger, but I was faster. We didn't stop when Principal Powers showed up or when Coach Boomer threw us against the wall with a shout, deafening us. We were still at each other's throats. Just when I saw an opening so get a good punch in his jaw, Warren and I were caught up in separate Containment Bubbles so that we could no longer touch each other. The bubbles were virtually indestructible and floated us away. I gave out an aggravated scream while my brother hit the sides of his bubble with both fists. The principal dispersed the crowd and we were sent to the detention room where the bubbles popped.

"Now," Principal Powers began. "If you guys ever so much as shake hands, the bubbles will reappear and you'll be stuck in them for the rest of the day." She left us alone in the creepy white room. I threw myself into the desk and buried my face in my arms.

We sat in silence for a few minutes. My mind replayed the argument we had and the words we threw at each other. I realized that I had been trying so hard to fight not being blamed that I had failed to take responsibility for the things that I should.

"I'm sorry about Zach," I said without looking at him.

"Tell him," he retorted.

"I will." I sat quietly again, my anger fading and my conscience coming back. "Do you hate me?" I felt like such a child, but maybe I still was. He didn't answer, so I could only assume it. I really began to feel the weight of the promise I had made and wanted so much to relieve it. I wanted him to know why I turned Dad in. I wanted him to stop hating me. "I'm sorry about what I said about Dad."

"Don't talk about him anymore."

"He was -"

"He's a selfish bastard and in a minute he would turn his back on us for his sake." I didn't realize how much Warren hated our father and decided not to push him further. If only I could tell him.


	7. Make a Little Love

Make a Little Love

Warren

Today was by far the longest day ever. I glanced up at the clock. Wednesdays were usually slow at the restaurant, so I knew the customer flow had stopped. I had about half an hour before the restaurant closed, and before Magenta made her nightly visit. I got a spontaneous idea and went to work to execute it.

I heard Magenta open the unlocked door and pause in surprise since I never left it unlocked this late.

"Hello?" she called. I watched her from the corner in the kitchen where I hid. She walked further into the restaurant and pause when she saw the table I had set for her complete with paper plates, Styrofoam cups, and fortune cookies.

"You hungry?" I asked, stepping out. She turned around. I borrowed my boss' white shirt that he kept in the back and was wearing it untucked with a loosely done tie. There wasn't much I was willing to do with the pants. I went to lock the door.

"Uh, sure," she said sitting down. I sat opposite her and lit the candle between us.

"How long have you been planning this?" she asked.

"Almost half an hour," I replied looking at my nonexistent watch. She laughed.

"I'd like to see what you can do with a little more time."

"Maybe you will." I poured us some tea and broke my chopsticks. Magenta took some of the fried rice. I loved it when a girl knew how to use chopsticks.

"It's good. Did you make this?"

"No, but I did heat it up."

"What's all this about?" she asked waving her hand at the table. I shrugged, still chewing.

"Just wanted to feed you." She grinned.

"You're lucky I showed."

"I know." I saw her smile and look down at her food. "I'm glad you came." We ate quietly; I wasn't huge on eating as you're talking, but I noticed her smile dissolve into a frown. I knew what was on her mind and decided that this night wasn't going to go well if it hung in the air. "Just say it." She hesitated a bit.

"Maybe you should ease up on your sister. You said so yourself that your dad is dangerous. Maybe she did the right thing, turning him in." I leaned back and exhaled sharply. I knew she was right. Despite today's little feud, the real villain in my story was the villain.

"I'll do my best," I offered. She seemed satisfied.

The drive home was comfortable. I held Magenta's hand with an uncharacteristic smile that I couldn't get rid of. I glanced over at her when I could; she was wearing the same smile. I cut the engine and opened her door to walk her to her door.

"So, tonight was fun," she said.

"Yeah, they all seem so with you." She rolled her eyes at me just as I bent low to kiss her mouth, my hand on her cheek. I put my other hand on the small of her back and pulled her closer to me. I pulled back and stole a look at my effect on her. She took a deep labored breath in. I grinned. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yeah, tomorrow." She made it into her house and I kept looking back out the door as I made my way to my car.

Karen

Zach and I had been going to rehearsals a few times a week. Now that my power was outed, I was able to fly us from school to home on a big Frisbee-type disk I made. We had a lot of chances to talk and get closer and I could tell he was getting less nervous about being around me.

I saw him looking at me a few times while I was stretching and warming up for the rehearsals while he hung out at the back painting the backdrops. My long hair was done up in a tight bun and I knew my attire was enough to make him nervous again. I mentally patted myself on the back for that. I went up on my pointe shoes and took a balance. I kicked up my leg in a grand battement and then a pas de chat followed by a tombe, chasse, into a ballet walk. I felt so free when I danced and truly happy. I loved it and what it did to me. I heard something drop and looked behind me to see Zach scrambling off his ladder to pick up the paintbrush on the floor. I chuckled to myself and then continued practicing.

"You're really good," Zach said to me while we were walking through the halls after rehearsal. "You seem like a real dancer."

"My mom used to send me for lessons when I was a kid, and then I just practiced in my room."

"It looks like you belong on the stage." I had to admit, I was a sucker for shockingly sweet words. A smile spread on my lips and I grabbed his hand to pull him into a dark and empty classroom. I shut the door behind me and pulled his face to me. Even with my eyes closed, I saw him glowing, literally. I pulled away to see his face. Now he got bold and kissed me again, putting his hands on my shoulders and moving them down my arms. I felt his tongue trying to get through, and I let him in, feeling it with my own. He moaned into my mouth, and that set me off. I felt my breathing get heavier as we kissed. He never told me, but I was pretty sure this was his first kiss as it was mine. After what seemed like hours, we finally pulled away from our kiss and he held me to him. He was just a little bit taller than me, but I fit in the contours of his body just fine.

"Karen, will you be my girlfriend?" he whispered into my ear. It almost seemed silly to ask, but I liked how official he was. I nodded and giggled, putting my hand on the back of his head. I looked straight into his glowing green face and gave him one last kiss before we jumped out of an open window and got caught in a gust of wind.

Warren

_I was dying; there was no mistaking it. The doctors tried to pass it off as the flu, but I knew better._

"Stop being so dramatic, Warren," my mom said walking into my room. I guess that groaning I heard in the background was me. "Even heroes can get sick." She laughed at my expense while she fluffed a pillow that made the ringing in my ears worse. "Don't try to move for the next few days and if get even a hint that you powered up while you were sick, you will have to answer to me, boy. You should have enough drugs in you to last the night." She left a tray of crap beside my bed and kissed me on the forehead. I was too weak to care. "You are hotter than usual, Baby. Your sister will be home soon, so please try not to set her on fire when she comes in to take care of you." And she was finally gone. I passed out on my bed and wished the world would end.

I woke up to the feeling of someone poking my face. I groggily opened my eyes to see a big-eyed beauty in my face.

"Sorry, did I wake you?" Magenta asked. I gave a chuckle and rolled onto my back. "Karen let me in."

"Yeah."

"So, the flu." I laughed. "How you feeling?" I was going to tell her how crappy I was feeling, then she put her hand on my face and all of a sudden I was much better.

"I feel good." It wasn't a lie.

"You're burning." She smiled. "More than usual," she had to add in. I rolled my eyes and she put a cold cloth on my head and poured me some water. I tried to focus on her face, but I could feel the medication clouding my thoughts.

"You look so good," I said sleepily. She laughed and held a cup to my mouth, which I took and drained. I touched her cold hand, though mine might have been just really hot. I pulled her arm and she pretended to resist but climbed on top of the blanket beside me. I ran my finger under her chin and started to get closer to her face.

"You better not get me sick, Peace," she playfully threatened. I laughed inches from her.

"And what are you gonna do about it?" She pursed her lips to the side and then shifted to her furry alter ego and ran up my shirt. I wasn't normally ticklish, but being sick made me super sensitive to her feet and nails. I really had to resist from reacting so I didn't roll over and crush her. She scurried up my shirt and stuck her furry head out of the neck and sat on my chest. I saw her rise and fall as I heavily breathed in and out. I gently stroked her fur from her head to her back, staring at her beady eyes as she twitched her nose and whiskers.

"Can you change back?" I requested. If this was supposed to be a moment, there was no way I was going to have it with an animal. She twitched her nose again before scurrying beside me and growing until she was fully human. She lay beside me on my outstretched arm. I guess she realized how close we were on my bed and started to sit up.

"I should go," she said quietly, but I held her with the arm that she leaned on.

"Just stay with me," I said, closing my eyes. The slight adrenaline that pumped through me calmed and my sickness started to take over. My eyes grew heavy and sleep started to get the best of me, even though I wanted to enjoy having Magenta on my bed with me. I was paralyzed, but still conscious when she morphed into a guinea pig and ran across my chest to escape my hold without waking me. I knew she was there, watching me sleep, but I couldn't move. She pulled the blanket up over me and planted a soft warm kiss on my cheek before leaving.

I was itching for lunchtime the day I was back in school. I really wanted to see Magenta. I missed her in the morning and we didn't have PE, which was the only class we were together. I must have looked awkward to anyone who was paying attention because every time I thought about her, I could physically feel me smiling, and the only way to stop smiling was to stop thinking about her. And I really didn't feel like doing that. The bell rang, and I sincerely had to keep myself from sprinting, even skipping, to her locker.

She had just closed the locker door when I got to her. I knew she saw me, but she avoided eye contact with me. Layla seemed bugged, so I ignored her, but I wanted to know what was up with Magenta. Everyone else headed to the cafeteria, but Magenta didn't follow, so I went her way. She was mad, I was pretty sure, though I had to admit I hadn't studied women long enough to really read the emotions too well.

"Magenta," I called after her. She didn't stop, even walked faster outside. "Magenta!" I ran up to her so that I was in the way of where she was heading. She huffed a bit before looking me in the eye. I could have sworn she shot lazers through me for a second.

"I had a little chat with your ex today," she said sharply. _Oh, crap._ "She's real kind." _Okay, I caught the sarcasm._ I knew I should be saying some intelligible, but I had nothing. "Why didn't you call her?" I could feel my defenses going up. What the hell was it to her? I wasn't cheating on her, and all that was before eons before her. I looked away, praying my anger wouldn't let me say anything stupid. "She said that everything was going great between you guys, and then one night together and she never heard from you again. Is it true?" I couldn't look at her, so I just nodded my head. I saw her head drop, clutching onto her books even harder. "Is that what you're going to do with me?" she asked quietly. I looked back her. She was still looking down. It seemed so cruel to get mad at something so small and vulnerable. How she had this hold on me, I couldn't tell you, but I didn't want her to be sad.

"Freeze Girl... I don't know, she was just... some girl," I managed to say. Magenta's eyes fluttered upwards, but didn't look at me. "She was cool, but then, it just stopped." Even I knew my words were making much sense, but it was the best way I could explain it. I put my hands on her shoulders and was surprised when she didn't pull away. "I'm sorry. It was not my finest moment, but I really like you and I can only hope that I am man enough to not let you down like that." She sighed and looked up at me.

"I'm not going to have sex with you."

"That's fair."

"And I don't like that you didn't call her back, that bothers me."

"I will send her an e-card." She smiled at my joke, which eased me.

"We're going to slow, so slow you might get bored."

"Bored with a guinea pig shape shifter named after a color between red and purple? I'll take those chances." She laughed again. I took her books from her arms and led her back to the cafeteria.

After lunch, Medulla was doing a science thing with crystals. I took my seat beside my lab partner, Parker. He was just as quiet and disconnected as me, so we got along just fine.

"Hey, what's up?" I asked him with a nod before taking my seat on the stool. He shrugged and showed me an article he was reading.

"Chameleon's is being investigated," he said smugly.

"The hero cop? What for?" We sometimes had random banters like this before dissolving into our own solitudes.

"Class," Medulla addressed in the background, "yesterday, we went through samples of crystals and their properties and how they enhance or hinder powers. But there was one sample we did not show you. Can anyone tell me which it was?" A girl from the corner shot her hand up.

"The Rock. It is a red crystal. It's often confused with ruby because it looks just like it and is often found amongst it."

"Correct."

"Someone leaked a tape of him talking about world domination," my lab partner continued, ignoring the lecture that was obviously going on. I smirked. I wasn't one for current events, but I had to admit that a hero working for the government and talking about world domination was juicy.

"And what is the unique power of the Rock?" Medulla went on. A guy with red curly hair and glasses raised his hand.

"Crystals usually react to a power, but The Rock itself , when there's enough of it, has its own power to give mind control to the person who holds it."

"Excellent."

"So Chameleon is on suspension," Parker continued shaking his head. I think he was talking more to himself than me. He did that sometimes too. For someone I wasn't interested in, he was my kind of friend.

"Now, here we have very small samples of rubies and The Rock. Using your microscopes, I want you to determine the differences between them, if you can." I stared at the red rock in my hand when the TA handed it to me. I remembered the newspapers saying that the Rock went missing from the museum shortly after Baron Battle was caught, but no one ever found out where the crystal was, though a lot of people still thought he had it. I chose to ignore this thought and the other people who may have also remembered that detail.

"I need to use the bathroom," I grumbled. I grabbed the hall pass and nodded in acknowledgement of Medulla. It was weird to see the usually crowded halls so empty; it seemed so normal, like regular high school. No one was setting anyone on fire or freezing people.. very strange.

Just as I came out of the bathroom, I saw something dark moving out of the corner of my eye. I grew curious and was in no rush to look at red stones in a microscope. I picked up my stride to follow the shadow around the corner. When I turned the corner, the figure was gone. _Maybe I'm just seeing things_, I reasoned and headed back to class when I hear a door open. I ran out to follow the sound. Whoever this guy was, he didn't want to be found, and that intrigued me. I heard steps running up the stairs. Another door opened.

"Karen's not here," I heard a man say. _Karen?_ I figured that neither realized that I was there. "This is ridiculous, Battle; we should get her when there is less people here." _Battle. My father. My father was looking for his rat daughter._


	8. Daddy's Little Liar

**I'm sad.. no one's commenting, but I really want to get this story posted so I can get some more stories up. (I don't like unfinished projects.) I hope even if ur not commenting that you're still reading and enjoying my story. Thank you for that!**

Daddy's Little Liar

Warren

"Karen's not here," I heard a man say. _Karen?_ I figured that neither realized that I was there. "This is ridiculous, Battle; we should get her when there is less people here." _Battle. My father. My father was looking for his rat daughter._

"I don't care what happens to me. I need to get her now."

"Your revenge will be futile if you are not free to enjoy it." There was a pause before my father continued.

"You said she wasn't here."

"The secretary said that she checked into school, but she wasn't in her classroom."

"She might've stepped out," Baron Battle said.

"It is safer for me to be seen inside. You check outside." I couldn't tell you how I felt when I heard my murderous villain father was after my sister who put him in jail. Sure I wasn't her biggest fan, but she _was _my sister. All I knew was that I couldn't let it happen. They went out another door at the top of the stairs. By the time I stepped out of the same door, both villains were gone. I started to run through the halls trying to find either, but they somehow disappeared. I figured Battle was who I wanted and headed outside.

Karen

I didn't get the point of standardized testing. Classes were meaningless enough, why did I need to be tested on stuff I didn't know? So here I saw with my feet dangling off the side of the roof, making a breeze circulate the otherwise stale air. I thought about my mom. I wished she'd wake up; I really missed her. I sighed and closed my eyes and wished to just see her open her eyes one more time.

The window was open in the classroom beneath me. I could hear Mr. Boy lecturing on the dangers of entering a crime scene before the hero. I noticed him stop mid-sentence, as if he saw or noticed something. Next thing I knew, the windows automatically slammed shut and the alarm was blaring.

Warren

The alarm rang, the one that locked down the school so no one could get in or out without breaking parts of the building. I froze at the piercing sound until my ears adjusted. I saw movement in the corner of my eye and turned to see my father running like the coward he was, so I hurled a fireball at him to slow him down. I knew I couldn't burn him, at least not permanently. He tumbled to the ground and bolted up to face me.

"Warren," he breathed.

"What the hell are you doing here?" I demanded. "And what do you want with Karen?"

"Warren, you don't understand."

"Like hell I don't." I attacked him as hard as I could. No one was going to be able to my father tricked me out of anything. I hated him, what he did to my family, my mom. My fury in the form of my power struck his smug face. He wasn't even dodging my shots. I watched the skin melt from his skin from the impact of the heat and then heal over. He would probably never die, but he felt pain and I was willing to max that out. I got another one to hit him just below the stomach so that his legs gave out under him and he was knocked to the floor. I took long strides towards him. He got up and gave me a grin that seemed to challenge me further. I took my time conjuring enough energy as I planned to make his body really work to regenerate.

Just as I winded back to let him have it, Karen swooped down from out of nowhere to put herself between me and our father.

"Warren, no!" she cried. I squinted in utter confusion. Was she actually defending him? He put her non-hero mother in a hospital! I stood frozen, the fire still swirling on my fingertips, though the surprise relaxed my stance. She took advange of my shock and blew a wind so strong, I had to shield my eyes. By the time I could open them, they were gone.

Karen

"You came. I can't believe you came. I really didn't think you'd be able to keep your promise, but you're here," I said after settling my father and me on the rooftop. My father just smiled at me and it took me awhile to realize why he wasn't confirming my beliefs. "You're not here to take me away." He shook his head.

"I thought it'd be better, safer for you if I was here to protect you, but I think I was wrong to think that," he said. My heart fell to the floor. I wanted to get out of here. I wanted to be with my dad; I had missed him so much.

"Dad, please, you can't outrun them on your own. You need me," I pleaded. He stroked my cheek with the back of his fingers.

"You're right. I do need you, and I can't outrun them. But you're going to stay here. The teachers here and your brother will protect you. I can't run anymore, Karen. I have to let happen what will happen." The teachers did very little to sneak up on us. We could hear them running up the stairs towards the roof. The door was barricaded, and we could hear Coach Boomer shouting for everyone to get out of the way so he could scream the door open.

"Dad, don't do this," I whispered. "We can still go." He just smiled as if his mind was already made.

"You're so much like your mother," he said gently. "So brave, even when the world around you changes. Take care of your brother for me." A tear rolled down my cheek as a booming shout echoed and cracked the door open.

"Forgive me for this, Karen," he said. Before I knew it, he had pushed me hard against the wall, just hard enough to barely wind me.

Warren

I followed the row of teachers running up the stairs and even had to check to see if my ears were bleeding after Boomer blew the door open. When I got to the top of the stairs, I could see Baron with a cynical smile with Karen knocked against the wall. She was crying, like a scared little girl would be. I ran up to them, but stopped dead in my tracks. The scene in front of me changed. There was something not right, like bad acting. My father seemed remorseful, not as hateful as he should have. I was confused about what I was seeing and stood there frozen. The teachers didn't seem to see what I saw and used their powers to tackle him. I knew his power, that he could jump from the edge of the building and walk away before any blood marked the pavement, but he didn't struggle. It was like he expected to be taken away.

"No! Dad!" Karen called after him as 2 teachers took him away, Boomer holding her back.

"She's calling for him?" the female teacher asked as she passed by me with Baron.

"He's her father, doesn't matter if he's trying to kill her, of course she's going to call for him," the male teacher reasoned. I looked back at my sobbing sister. I didn't know why, but my body moved to replace the teacher holding her. She fell into my arms and wrapped her arms around me, crying into my sleeve. I had no idea what had just happened, but just let Karen be vulnerable for now.

I cautiously knocked on Karen's door and slowly let myself in. I made sure the waterworks turned off before trying to talk to her about today. It was windy in her room, I guessed because she was flying a paper plane. The wind stopped and the plane fell when she saw me enter.

"You okay?" I asked. She nodded.

"A lot better now, thanks." I sat with her on her bed. I had so many questions but didn't know how to ask then. Luckily she picked up on it.

"He made me promise not to tell," she said.

"Not to tell what?"

"He didn't do it." The words took me awhile to process.

"Didn't do what?"

"He didn't kill anyone." Again, more processing.

"He didn't... What do you mean.... How do you know?"

"I was there. I saw it. But Dad made me promise not to tell." I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Five years of blaming my dad for ruining our lives and now I was supposed to believe he didn't kill anyone? Was that what she was trying to tell me? I just couldn't accept it.

"But you said it was him."

"That was the only evidence they had against him, my testimony, and they needed someone to blame for the Rock to go missing, so everyone believed me. He made me swear that I would say that." I was almost speechless and it took awhile for me to find my next question.

"Why? Why would he tell you to say he murdered someone?"

"He was trying to protect us," she answered.

"How? From who?" She didn't answer me. "So why did dad break out of jail?" She bit her lip.

"He promeid me that when he got the chance, he'd come and take me away so I'd be forever safe. His words. But I guess while he was hiding or fighting or whatever, he changed his mind. He said that I was in danger, and if I left Sky High, I'd be vulnerable. He wants me to stay in school so I'm surrounded by heroes."

"So... your mom.." Karen just nodded.

"She was a warning, although I don't understand why _he _would think to give one now. It doesn't really make sense."

"Does my mom know about all this?" I asked. She shook her head.

"Dad made me promise never to tell you guys." I sighed and just looked at her. She looked so worn and tired from worry and sadness. I didn't realize the burden she'd had to carry for 5 years.

"You're really brave, you know that, Kare?" She laughed and smiled at my compliment. I took one of her hands and cupped it between two of mine.

"We'll be okay, I promise."

**So what'd ya think? At all suspenseful? All too predictable? Confusing? Thanks for reading! Leave a comment!**


	9. Homecoming

**I'm starting to suffer from writer's block, so sorry it's taking so long for these chapters to come up. I hope you like!**

Homecoming

Karen

Homecoming. I had heard how bad this dance turned out last year, but this year was supposed to be much better. I had a white flowy dress on with orchids in my hair that my mom put in. Warren took his car to pick up his date while I picked up mine on my hover disk. We met up with Zach's friends, including my brother, at school.

"You look really nice," Zack commented as we danced. My cheek was pressed up against his. I smiled at the compliment.

"You're not half bad yourself," I said. He smelled a tad too strong of cologne, but even that I found charming. We moved back and forth and in circle. It was magic. He was magic. I looked over to see Warren dancing with Magenta. She was really small compared to him, but he seemed really into her, and that made me happy.

The beauty of the slow dance ended and hip hop music began playing again. Zach and I danced to our heart's content, but eventually the music started to get too loud for my taste.

"Do you mind if we step outside for a few minutes?" I asked him.

"Sure," he yelled back over the deafening sounds and led me out to the darkened hallway. We walked hand in hand through the hallway. I rubbed my arms to warm them up since I had left my jacket at the tables back where the dance was. That was something I could not control about the air, the temperature. Luckily, Zach took notice and took off his jacket to throw over me like a cape. He left one arm around me as we walked.

"Was homecoming like this at all last year?" I asked him.

"Not even a little bit," he replied. I laughed and smiled at him and looked ahead of me to see a dark figure walking towards us in the hallways. It was dark, and my eyes would have failed me if it was anyone else walking by, but I could have picked _him _if I was blind.

"Shouldn't you kids be enjoying the dance?" the Chameleon asked.

"We just stepped out to escape the loud music," Zach responded. I stood there motionless, barely breathing. He shot me a cunning look and a nasty grin.

"You should be heading back. I wouldn't want anything terrible to happen to you." Zach looked to me to obey the officer, but my frightened eyes were locked with his. Again Zach pulled me and led me out back to the dance.

"You okay?" he asked me. I picked up my pace.

"Yeah, I'm fine." We entered the loud and jumpy room where everyone else was having a great time. As for me, I felt nowhere near like having a good time, but I didn't want to ruin things for Zach. So I put on the fakest face of happiness I had and led him out to the dance floor.

Warren

After the dance, we all split up. I was sure Will wanted some alone time with Layla, seeing how it was their one-year anniversary, and I was all for hanging out with Magenta sans people. I drove Magenta to a nice spot on a hill after buying us some real food at a fast food joint.

"I gotta say, you look good in a tux," she remarked as she ate a fry. We were lying down on the hood of my car on a blanket I just so happened to have.

"It's all for you, Babe." I had taken my jacket off and undone the tie so that it hung loosely around my neck.

"This is a nice place."

"Yeah, I found this awhile back when my dad was put away. It's a nice place to get away from reality."

"This isn't the place...."

"No," I said quickly. "I wouldn't bring her here. This place is.... special." She nodded and bit into the last chicken nugget. "So have you ever dated anyone?" She shrugged.

"If you want to count my fourth grade boyfriend of thirteen minutes, then yes. It ended badly." I laughed and slung my arm around her and she climbed on it to lean against my chest. I held my hand out and she slipped her fingers between mine.

"Power up," she requested. She removed her hand from mine and I turned on a small flame so that it looked like my palm was on fire. She stared at the fire for a bit then at me. She leaned up and towards me, kissing me hard and hungrily. I put my arm around her so that I could put her on top of me. I held her face to mine, rubbing her cheek with my thumb. It was weeks since she talked to me about Freeze Girl. I promised that I wouldn't push her go to anything she didn't want to do, so I was suprised when her tongue started licking my lips, begging for entrance. I opened my eyes to see her completely lost in the kiss. My tongue played with hers, my eyes still open. She was a great kisser. My other hand pressed her back to me as both of our breathing got heavier.

"You're amazing," I whispered when we finally broke away. She kissed me on the lips and then brushed her hot lips to my ear where she gently licked and kissed. I couldn't help but moan and buried my face in her neck. She pulled away and I boldly rolled her onto her back. I figured whatever she did to me was fair game. I kissed her without tongue long and lingering, again opening my eyes to stare at her. She really was something. I kissed down her neck, holding up my weight in her arms. I used a finger to tease her collarbone before kissing it. I licked my lips and made my way back to her mouth. She pressed the back of my head as I kissed her. I leaned back on my side and when she broke away, I took her hand without looking away and kissed her palm.

"Wow," she breathed heavily. "You're really good."

"So are you."

Karen

Zach and I walked into the hospital with a bouquet of flowers. I was growing concerned that she wasn't waking up.

"Mom, this is Zach," I said, introducing him to the motionless shell of my mother. "Zach, this is my mom." Zach looked at her awkwardly.

"Uh, hi," he said, scratching his head. I changed out the flowers in a vase beside her bed. "What happened to her?"

"She was attacked, but I wasn't there to protect her," I said sitting down beside her. "I pretended not to have any powers, so I could pretend I was a normal teenage. I could've gone home and protected her. But I just kept it all to myself." He came behind me and put his hands on my shoulder.

"I don't think she'd ever blame you."

"She'd be the only one." Just then the steady beeping noise of her heart monitor started to speed up. Before I could call a nurse, one ran in with a doctor behind her. They started yelling stuff to each other and before I knew it they were squirting gel on paddles and yelling 'clear'. Each time they juiced her, the sound of the monotone beep got louder and louder.

"No!" I screamed. Zach grabbed me and held me back from running and jumping on top of my mom while nurses and doctors gave each other defeated looks. She couldn't die. I kept my promise, like the stupid child that I was. I did my part. It was just supposd to be a warning. Then how come they were covering her with a sheet and wheeling her away? I sobbed into Zach's shirt as he held me. Of course I was incapable of summoning enough wind to take us home, so Zach called Warren to pick us up. I knew he was making the call, without even asking me what I needed, but the world around me seemed to move so fast. My mom was gone. The one person in my life who could not have been less involved in this world was taken from me. I didn't remember how I got home. I remembered collapsing in tears when I got through the door of my house and Warren had to carry me to my room. His mom stayed with me all night. _He _made a mistake with his little warning and he was going to pay.

**Please review so I know people are still reading. Thanks for stopping by!**


	10. When all is said, what needs to be done

**Hey! Sorry for the long break. Here's the next chapter!**

When all is said, What needs to be done.

Karen

Weeks later was the showcase. Of course, I was excused from participating, but I thought this would be a nice tribute to my mom. I was in purple tights and leotard and Zach helped me put on the glittery yellow wings. I had to be careful of who was behind me lest I knock 'em down.

"You look beautiful," Zach said when he got a chance. He was in a fat white costume that he could glow through and was supposed to hang from above. He bent down to kiss me lightly and then ran off to get strapped in. The music started and the show began. About 15 minutes into the show was my turn. I chaineed very tight and small turns to the center of the stage with 3 other fairies and we pas de bourreed and pirouetted around. It was hard to see the audience with glare of the lights, but even in the darkness, I recognized _him_.

He was here to frighten me. He wouldn't be stupid enough to harm me in front of all these people, but my instincts were going crazy. I kept on dancing without breaking a step, but my eyes were searching for my brother now. I was scared. I needed to tell someone everything in case I never was able to. Even after our dance, we remained on stage for a good portion of the show until intermission. I was relieved yet afraid at the same time. Now I could find Warren, but _he_ could also find me, and the latter was frightening. Even though I wasn't supposed to, I took off my wings and ran to find Warren sitting with Magenta and the others who were luckily sitting near the front, so they couldn't leave as easily.

"Warren!" I called panicking.

"Hey Karen, you were pretty good," he complimented. I shoved it to the side.

"Warren, he's here."

"Who?"

"Chameleon."

"Yeah, he's the police escort," he said confused. "There's other cops here too." I shook my head, frustrated that I couldn't tell him everything fast enough.

"No, no. It's him. He killed my mom. He's the one that framed Dad. I saw him.." I looked up to to see if I could spot him, but he was gone. If he knew I was telling the secret, he would do anything to hurt me. He was a chameleon, changing himself to perfectly match the background of anyone's perspective of what they think they see, so it was hard to see him when he powered up. I motioned for everyone to follow me and led them into a small room. Zach saw us and followed. I led us into a small classroom.

"Warren, torch everything around us," I instructed. He did as I asked quickly with flame thrower fire, so I knew that the Chameleon wasn't here. "When I was 9, a little bit after I came to live with you, I stowedaway in Dad's car because he told me that he was going to visit my mom to tell her how I was doing. But he lied. He and two others apparently had been planning to break into the hero museum to steal The Rock."

"Whoa, so it was your dad who took it?" Ethan interrupted. Everyone turned to glare at him before he shrank back.

"I followed them in. The Chameleon snuck inside and turned off the security cameras while the other guy, The Vortex, flew them in so they wouldn't set off the weight sensors in the floor and then turned off that system as well. When I saw the lights go out, that's when I ran in. They took turns doing their parts to get past the security system. Out dad regenerates, so fast he doesn't even bleed. That's why he lives so long. I saw him take the arrows when the system shot him when he reached for the Rock. When he got back to them, they started to argue about who was to keep it. They all of a sudden had different opinions of how it was supposed to be used or something and began fighting. Chameleon changed into his lizard form and killed Vortex. I don't know what his plan was with Dad, since he knew he couldn't kill him, but Dad grabbed the Rock and ran. Before I knew what was going on, I was caught and Chameleon threatened to kill me if he didn't give him the Rock. The sirens were getting louder, so Dad gave it to him and Chameleon fled. But Dad gave him a fake. He told me to hide the Rock and to say that only Dad and Vortex were involved. He told me I would understand when I got older why I had to do this.

"When the Chameleon realized he had a fake, he went to Dad and Dad told him that he would only exchange our silence for his family's safety."

"But now he's done the exact opposite with your mom," Warren said. I nodded.

"So now he has little reason to think I would keep his secret."

"And he's already in hot water because of the investigation," Will pointed out.

"We should tell someone," Layla suggested.

"He wouldn't do anything tonight, would he?" Will asked. "There's so many people here."

"Then maybe we should stay in sight of those very many people?" Magenta suggested. We agreed and headed out.

Everyone stopped before I realized why.

"Well, well, well," I heard _him_ say. "Looks like someone doesn't know how to keep their mouth shut." He was dressed in a hero police outfit that seemed unusually villainous and ironic.

"Funny how a deal can break when the other side doesn't keep up their end," I said nervously behind my brother's large back.

"Well it seems we're in a bit of a jam, aren't we? I can't say things are going to end well for me, are they? I am already being investigated, and a few murders and robbery won't look very good on my record." He tapped his fingers on his chin as if thinking of a solution. "I suppose it will just be your word against mine." He turned on his heel and walked away, leaving us flabbergasted and shaking in our leotards. Oh wait, that was just me.

"So what do we do now?" Ethan asked.

Warren

Everyone went back to the auditorium where everyone was already seated and ready for the second half the show. We decided to stay with the crowd since Chameleon was least likely to make a move in front of an auditorium full of heroes. I stayed with Karen backstage until she was ready to go back out for her next dance. She did her little things on the tips of her toes that made my own toes hurt. She was pretty good and she seemed to really enjoy herself. Just then she lifted into the air and had a scared face on before she flew to the other side of the stage. That didn't seem like that was supposed to be part of the show and the other dancers looked at each other like they didn't understand what just happened. I ran out the back to the other side of the stage, but she was gone. The others were already there.

"What happened?" Layla asked.

"Wow, he really did do something right in front of everyone," Magenta said. "He literally just picked her up and took her off stage."

"We have to find her," I stated. "Magenta, Ethan, can you guys search the vents? It'll be easier for you to hear where they are."

"We're on it," Ethan said melting into the vent on the ground. I pulled Magenta to me and kissed her.

"We'll find her," she assured me. I threw a fire ball off the cover of the vent above and Magenta shifted and climbed up into it.

"Follow the vents," I instructed to everyone else. We spread out and tried to listen in vents to see if either Ethan or Magenta found her.

Karen

My kicking and attempts to scream were useless. Chameleon was tall, taller than my brother and his big hand was covering my mouth completely. He opened the principal's office and threw me into a chair, pinning me down and wrapped a generous amount of tape around my wrists. I huffed and gave up fighting while he tied me to the chair.

"Scream all you like, little girl, no one will hear you from here," he taunted me.

"You won't get away with this," I said trying to flail my feet at him. He got a hold of those too and wrapped the tape around my legs. "Killing me won't keep my dad quiet."

"Oh, I think a cop's testimony, even if he is a bit shady, still outweighs an alleged murderer whose own daughter turned him in." I kicked and struggled in vain, trying to use my power to throw him or release me, but I couldn't with my hands bound.

"Why would you attack my mom?" I demanded. "Why didn't you just stay hidden? You wouldn't even have to think twice about me."

"I admit that probably wasn't my best idea. Your mom decided to do some digging for her latest scoop into some of my cases. She was the one who instigated the whole mess with my career. Not too many others figured out that the cases I was assigned and solved, or didn't, tended to work out in my favor. So, I decided to kill two birds with one stone, figuratively, of course. She wasn't supposed to die." Anger and fury burn in my veins. I almost didn't noticed the melted mess that seeped through the vent on the floor. Chameleon was turned away, looking out the glass wall of Principal Powers' office. I motioned for Ethan to get to her desk, hoping he would understand what I wanted him to do.

"Why would you want the Rock anyway? What did you and my father want it for?"

"Well, we all had different reasons for wanting it. I let Vortex and the Baron think I was helping them achieve their uses for it. The Baron felt that it belonged to the Russians who created it, and the Vortex was interested in the reward. But I.." he turned to look at me. "want world domination," he shouted with a fist in the air.

"Then why did you kill Vortex?" I asked. "I saw you use your claws. There's no way my dad could have made an injury like that if the police cared enough to check."

"That wasn't planned. I merely wanted to safeguard the Rock, but Vortex started to get suspicious with me. Now, you seem to have something of mine."

"You won't find it," I said. He crouched down to my level so that we were eye-to-eye.

"Oh, I think I will."

Warren

"Guys, I think I hear them," I heard Magenta say in the vent. "Principal Powers' office." We started heading off in that direction. As we were running, we heard a voice over the PA

_"Why would you want the Rock anyway? What did you and my father want it for?"_

_"Well, we all had different reasons for wanting it. I let Vortex and the Baron think I was helping them achieve their uses for it. The Baron felt that it belonged to the Russians who created it, and the Vortex was interested in the reward. But I.." he turned to look at me. "want world domination," he shouted with a fist in the air._

_"Then why did you kill Vortex?" I asked. "I saw you use your claws. There's no way my dad could have made an injury like that if the police cared enough to check."_

_"That wasn't planned. I merely wanted to safeguard the Rock, but Vortex started to get suspicious with me. Now, you seem to have something of mine."_

Somehow Karen got a way to put their conversation over the PA system. I kept running, hoping we would get to her before it was too late.

I almost stopped, but then ran even faster. There was a sound over the PA, the ultimate cry for help. A scream.

**:D**


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